Arable land — Area in South America
South America: Arable land — Area was 127,229 1000 ha in 2024. ▲ Rising
Arable land — Area in South America, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in 1000 ha.
Analysis
In 2024, arable land — area in South America stood at 127,229 1000 ha. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 9.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land — area in South America peaked at 127,229 1000 ha in 2024 and was at its lowest, 61,048 1000 ha, in 1961.
South America ranks 16th of 32 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Arable land — Area in South America, year by year
| Year | 1000 ha | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 61,048 1000 ha | — |
| 1962 | 62,084 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 1963 | 63,047 1000 ha | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 64,014 1000 ha | +1.5% |
| 1965 | 65,134 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 1966 | 66,754 1000 ha | +2.5% |
| 1967 | 68,019 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 1968 | 70,051 1000 ha | +3.0% |
| 1969 | 70,720 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 1970 | 71,296 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 1971 | 72,598 1000 ha | +1.8% |
| 1972 | 74,471 1000 ha | +2.6% |
| 1973 | 75,896 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 77,391 1000 ha | +2.0% |
| 1975 | 78,800 1000 ha | +1.8% |
| 1976 | 81,885 1000 ha | +3.9% |
| 1977 | 84,852 1000 ha | +3.6% |
| 1978 | 87,753 1000 ha | +3.4% |
| 1979 | 90,656 1000 ha | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 93,629 1000 ha | +3.3% |
| 1981 | 94,768 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 1982 | 95,830 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 1983 | 96,936 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 1984 | 98,156 1000 ha | +1.3% |
| 1985 | 100,018 1000 ha | +1.9% |
| 1986 | 99,305 1000 ha | -0.7% |
| 1987 | 98,236 1000 ha | -1.1% |
| 1988 | 97,204 1000 ha | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 95,901 1000 ha | -1.3% |
| 1990 | 94,620 1000 ha | -1.3% |
| 1991 | 93,461 1000 ha | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 92,226 1000 ha | -1.3% |
| 1993 | 91,108 1000 ha | -1.2% |
| 1994 | 90,267 1000 ha | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 89,574 1000 ha | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 90,350 1000 ha | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 91,301 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 1998 | 92,201 1000 ha | +1.0% |
| 1999 | 92,905 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 2000 | 93,962 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 2001 | 94,285 1000 ha | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 94,478 1000 ha | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 97,043 1000 ha | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 99,565 1000 ha | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 102,216 1000 ha | +2.7% |
| 2006 | 104,394 1000 ha | +2.1% |
| 2007 | 106,740 1000 ha | +2.2% |
| 2008 | 106,646 1000 ha | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 106,506 1000 ha | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 110,528 1000 ha | +3.8% |
| 2011 | 112,367 1000 ha | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 113,920 1000 ha | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 114,606 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 116,014 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 117,439 1000 ha | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 118,393 1000 ha | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 119,682 1000 ha | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 120,513 1000 ha | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 122,134 1000 ha | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 124,077 1000 ha | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 126,327 1000 ha | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 125,534 1000 ha | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 126,340 1000 ha | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 127,229 1000 ha | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 65,653 1000 ha | 61,048 1000 ha | 70,720 1000 ha | 9 |
| 1970s | 79,560 1000 ha | 71,296 1000 ha | 90,656 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1980s | 96,998 1000 ha | 93,629 1000 ha | 100,018 1000 ha | 10 |
| 1990s | 91,801 1000 ha | 89,574 1000 ha | 94,620 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2000s | 100,584 1000 ha | 93,962 1000 ha | 106,740 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2010s | 116,560 1000 ha | 110,528 1000 ha | 122,134 1000 ha | 10 |
| 2020s | 125,901 1000 ha | 124,077 1000 ha | 127,229 1000 ha | 5 |
Countries ranked near South America
More environment data for South America
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.98 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -6.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.218 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.23 °C (2025)
- Roundwood — Production 477.72 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood, non-coniferous — Production 379.32 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood, coniferous — Production 98.40 million m3 (2024)
- Roundwood — Export value 589,290 1000 USD (2024)
- Roundwood — Export quantity 4.28 million m3 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land — area in South America?
- Arable land — area in South America was 127,229 1000 ha in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest arable land — area recorded in South America?
- The highest recorded value was 127,229 1000 ha in 2024.
- What is the lowest arable land — area recorded in South America?
- The lowest recorded value was 61,048 1000 ha in 1961.
- How does South America rank for arable land — area?
- South America ranks 16th out of 32 groups with data for 2024.
- Is arable land — area rising or falling in South America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South America data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Arable land — Area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The FAOSTAT Land Use domain contains data on twenty-one land use categories and twenty-three categories of irrigation and agricultural practices. Data are available yearly and by country, regional and global levels. The domain includes Land Use Indicators providing information on the percentage share of agricultural and forest land, and their sub-components, including irrigated areas and areas under organic agriculture, within a country land use matrix. Data are available at country, regional and global level, for the following elements: (in percentage) i) Share in Land area; ii) Share in Agricultural land, iii) Share in Cropland; and iv) Share in Forest land; (in ha/pc) v) Area per capita.